10 Most Important DIY Project Tools To Have Around
Why pay someone to fix things when you can do it yourself? The DIY movement is an old practice of personal involvement using your skills and talents in keeping and maintaining your home. It’s all about starting small, focusing on easy and doable fixes, and using the right tools and equipment.
With DIY, you can unleash your talents and creativity and save money on costly contractor fees or professional fees. And if you’re ready to join the do-it-yourself movement, consider the following top ten tools to get you started.
Paint And Paint Brushes
Color adds life, enhances the appearance of any project, and allows you to show your creative side. There are many ways to add color to your DIY project, and using all kinds of paint is one. You must have at least three primary paint colors green, yellow, and red, along with different types of brushes. Your brush set should have flat, round, pointed, and fan brush tips. Aside from buckets of primary color paint, you may also stock up on spray paint, watercolor paint, and more. Keep all your painting supplies organized on a shelf or box.
Hand Tools
Whether you’re making DIY picture frames or doing some basic electrical work, you need proper hand tools. It would help if you had at least the following inside your toolbox
- Hammer
- Adjustable wrench
- Screwdriver
- Putty knife, utility knife
- Pliers
- Handsaw
- Hardware including finishing nails, galvanized nails, vinyl sinkers, drywall, and outdoor screws
- Tapes such as duct tape, painter’s tape, electrical tape, and plumber’s tape
Place all your tools neatly inside a durable toolbox. You might prefer to use a tool belt, especially when you need to work in dangerous areas like the roof or while on a tree. A tool belt must have adequate pockets and sections to accommodate the tools you need (bring only the tools you will need) and should fit you well.
Measuring Tape
You need a durable, accurate, and handy tape measure. It must have a large number fonts so you can read the measurement and should have a usable belt loop and thumb lock. There are many brands of measuring tape, find one that suits your needs well.
Saw Horse
A sawhorse is an indispensable piece of equipment in any shop or shed. It holds wood for sawing, fastening, and finishing. It would help if you also had a sawhorse for daily DIY tasks involving wood, metal, electrical and other types of material. You can make your sawhorses and a sawhorse table using pieces of leftover wood and plywood, or you can purchase branded saw horses (a pair would do nicely). Branded ones are adjustable, made of hard plastic and metal, and are very durable.
Cordless Drill
A cordless drill is a versatile tool and should be a part of your DIY kit. With a drill, you can make a big or small hole. You can drive screws and other hardware in place. A drill can help you mix paint, concrete, and grout; it can sand different surfaces and grind all kinds of metals to remove rust and dirt. Take note that a cordless drill uses batteries or a battery pack. It’s best to have extra batteries or a full-charged extra battery pack, especially when you’re going to use your drill longer. And for special deals on cordless tools, visit Coupon Lawn.
Glue & Glue Gun
Another convenient tool is the good-old glue gun. It would help if you had hot glue to fasten wood, metal, cardboard, paper, rope, ribbons, and many more. Be sure to have a working glue gun and at least a dozen glue sticks for your tool. A long extension cord is also handy in case you need to take your glue gun farther. Don’t forget to power off your gun when not in use, as this is the most common reason why glue guns fail to work.
Levels And Rulers
A good level will help you check if the project you’re making is level. There are many types of rulers, choose the right one that you’ll likely use for your kind of home DIY project
- Desk ruler – the most common ruler, used for necessary measurements
- Yardstick or a meter stick – to measure fabric, paper, and other flat materials.
- Carpenters rule or a folding ruler – this is a ruler used for construction or woodworking.
- T-square – this is a type of ruler used for technical drawing and for constructing plans.
- Seamstress tape is a flexible type of ruler used to measure body parts, fabric, and other sewing materials.
Scissors & Blades
It would be best if you had a very durable pair of scissors to cut necessary materials like paper, cardboard, felt, fabric, and thread. Don’t use kitchen scissors for your DIY crafts and projects. Use a blade or a cutter with a sharp knife to cut shapes and patterns on different materials. You may want to check out cutting machines like a Cricut computer-guided cutting machine if you love making patterns and cutting different materials for various projects. This machine has special blades, scoring, and cutting tools to work on different fabric, paper, thin pieces of wood, metal, and plastic.
Twine & Ribbons
With colorful twine or ribbons, you can make lovely DIY crafts, toys, gift items, and many more. Make sure to include paper twine, satin ribbons, different colors of knitting thread, twine rope, gift-wrapping ribbons, raffia, jute twine, and cotton twine in your collection. You’ll never know when a great craft idea might pop up.
Lamps Or Lighting
It would be best if you had at least an excellent working lamp so you can work under proper lighting conditions. An LED gooseneck lamp would work fine to work on a crafting table while an LED headlight or flashlight is vital if you want to work safely on electrical or carpentry work at home. Always update your DIY toolbox and equipment. Anything used must be replenished right away. Also, maintain tools properly like oiling hand saws or taking care of paint brushes after use. Doing these simple things can extend the life of your tools, so they’ll be ready to use next time.
About the author
The Handyman Tips Team is a group of authors that provides tips on the Handyman Tips website. The Handyman Tips team consists of real handymen, contractors, carpenters, woodworkers, and experts in home repairs, appliance repairs, and landscaping. The team is always there for visitors to the Handyman Tips website. If you can’t find the answer to your question on the Handyman Tips website, one of them will reply to you almost immediately if you contact them through the Ask the Handyman page!